Reunion Of Emotions
by Epsil0nCha0s
Summary: Ash invites some friends for the holidays! But what if romance is in the air? Contains advanceshipping, as well as other various shippings.
1. Chapter 1

**Holiday Of Returns**

(Ash's POV)

I sat in the living room of my cozy home in Pallet. I was now 15 years old. I was taking a break from my journey to share the holidays with my mom, who missed me. I stepped into the kitchen and found my mom making the usual feast.

"Hello, Ash. Dinner will be ready in a couple of hours. You can invite some of your friends, if you'd like." I watched her put the turkey in the oven. I smiled.

"Okay, Mom! Thanks!" I rushed into the other room, and sat in front of the screen. I pushed some numbers, then a deep voice came in the other end.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Brock!" I pushed another button, then my friend's face appeared on the screen. He smiled at me.

"Ash! Happy Thanksgiving!" he waved at me, I waved back.

"It's good to see you again! I was wondering if you'd want to come over. My mom's making a big feast, and I'd love for you to come." I told the man, but he frowned.

"Sorry, Ash. I have to stay in Pewter City to take care of my family. They'll starve without me." we laughed as he finished his last sentence.

"Well, that's too bad. It was great to see you, though." I smiled again.

"You, too, Ash. Have a great one. " he smiled, then the screen turned black. I frowned, but knew his family wanted to see him more than me. I smiled as I dialled another number. It rang a few times, then a female voice answered.

"Hello?" I recognized it immediately.

"Hello, Mrs. Maple." I pressed a button, revealing the woman's smiling face.

"Hello, Ash! Good to see you again!" she said cheerfully, then I noticed a man appear behind her.

"Did you say Ash?" he asked as he leaned behind the woman. He saw me, then smiled. "It's been a while, Ash!" he greeted.

"Hello, Norman! How's the gym doing?" I asked him.

"Ah, perfect! Max is becoming a great trainer, so I'm training him to take my place." Norman told me, I was happy for my friend.

"That's great to hear. By the way, are Max and May there? I would like to speak to them." the man nodded, then the woman disappeared. I heard her voice call to the children, and heard thumping. I heard her tell them who was on the phone, and their faces quickly appeared beside the man on the screen.

"Hey, Ash!" the 11 year old boy smiled to me. He still wore his glasses, but he had really grown since the last I saw him.

"Hi, Ash!" the 14 year old May gave her sweet smile, as always. Her hair was still in the red bandana, but she wore red lip-gloss and some girly thing for your cheeks.

"hey, guys! How you been?" I waved to them.

"We've been great! I'm going to be the gym leader soon!" Max said excitedly, then the man tapped on the boy's shoulder.

"Remember, you're in _training_." the man said, then he stood and walked off-screen. The kids were still smiling.

"So how have you been, Ash?" May asked me.

"I've been good. Just relaxing at home." I answered.

"Why did you call us?" Max asked.

"I was wondering if you'd like to visit me in Pallet. It`s getting lonely with me and my mom alone, plus she`s making a big dinner!" I told them.

"We'd love to visit, Ash! I've wanted to see you again!" May said excitedly, I noticed Max sigh.

"May, we're both excited to see him." Max reminded her, making her turn a light shade of red. I saw Norman and Caroline appear behind them.

"You're not travelling all the way to Kanto alone, kids. We'll go with you." Caroline said.

"Awww!" Max complained, making me laugh. I saw May giggle, too.

"Now, now. You may be responsible, but we don't trust you alone at your age." Norman said.

"You don't trust us!" Max stared at the man. Me and May laughed again.

"Well, Ash. Is there room for two adults on this trip?" Caroline leaned her head towards the screen.

"Of course! It'd be great to see you and Norman again!" I replied happily, flashing a thumbs-up.

"Great! We'll take the earliest ship to Kanto, then head for Pallet Town!" Norman said, making everyone cheer.

"Alright, see you here, then!" I waved to the family.

"Bye, Ash!" May quickly said before they disappeared. I laughed to myself, thinking of how Max reacted to Norman's statement. I shook the feeling away as I dialled the next number. Soon, a feminine voice came across the line again.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Misty!" I pressed the button, revealing the 17 year old girl with orange hair. I noticed it had grown a bit, and she let it flow down to her shoulders. She was wearing a blue tank-top.

"Hi, Ash! How you been?" she smiled.

"Good. I was wondering if you'd like to visit. My mom's making a big dinner." I told her.

"Wow, Ash! I'd love to come!" Misty replied happily.

"Is that your boyfriend on the line?" I heard a voice come from off-screen, Misty turned a deep red.

"He's not my boyfriend! Watch the pokemon!" Misty yelled, then faced me again. "I'm sorry about that." she rubbed her arm.

"No problem. See you here, then?" I asked her.

"You bet. I'll be there later tonight. Catch you, Ketchum." she winked as her face disappeared. I sighed, then cracked my knuckles. I never realized this would be hard! I pressed more numbers, then another feminine voice answered.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Ms. Berlitz." I pushed the button and saw the woman's face appear on-screen.

"Why, hello, Ash! I told you, call me Johanna." she smiled to me.

"Okay. Is Dawn there?" I asked her.

"Of course. Dawn, phone!" she called up the stairs, and I saw a pair of pink sneakers come down the steps.

"Who is- Ash!" the 13 year old jumped in front of the screen, startling me and Johanna. "It's great to see you!" she smiled cheerfully. I noticed she still wore her skirt, but it was now blue instead of black.

"Hey, Dawn. Great to see you, too." I replied.

"Is something wrong?" she asked me.

"No, nothing like that. I was wondering if you and your mother would like to visit us in Pallet. I know it's a long trip from Sinnoh, but my mom's making a big dinner and-" I started, but saw Johanna's hand go up.

"No need to explain, Ash. We just need to hear 'visit' and we're okay." Johanna said.

"Yeah! We'll be in Kanto tomorrow morning!" Dawn added, making me smile.

"Okay. See you tomorrow, then." I waved, then turned off the monitor. I smiled, then stepped into the kitchen for a break.

"Done already?" my mom asked me.

"No. Taking a break." I answered as I pulled out a glass of juice. I finished it quickly, then sat in front of the screen again. I dialled another number, then heard a boy's voice.

"Hello?"

"Ritchie!" I pressed the button and saw the boy's face. I noticed Sparky on his shoulder and waved to them. He saw me and smiled.

"Ash! It's been a while!" he said.

"I know. I was wondering if you'd like to visit in Pallet." I told him, making Sparky nod happily.

"Well, Sparky wants to. So I'm in, too. I'll be there tonight sometime. See you, Ash." he said, then the screen turned black. I smiled as I dialled the next number, then heard the masculine voice on the other end.

"Hello?"

"Reggie!" I said cheerfully as the man's face appeared.

"Ash! It's been too long!" he smiled back.

"Hey, is Paul there? I wanted to ask the both of you something." I said. He nodded, then disappeared from the screen. I heard him shouting Paul's name. Soon, Reggie appeared. Then Paul's face sat beside him.

"Hey, Ash. Haven't seen you since the sinnoh league." Paul said, showing a small smirk.

"It has, Paul. I was wondering if you two would like to come to Pallet Town for the holidays." I told them.

"I'm sorry, Ash. But I have to take care of some pokemon a trainer left me. They just had an egg and I can't leave it unsupervised. Paul will be there, though!" he put his hand on Paul's shoulder and smiled.

"I guess so. I don't have anything to do other than training. I guess I'll be there tomorrow." Paul said with another smirk. I waved to the two, who lifted their hands in response before the screen turned black. I smiled, seeing how Paul was smiling a lot more. I pushed more numbers, then a boy's voice came over the line. He sounded childish.

"Hey! What's the big idea, calling my poketch?"

"Barry, it's me." I sighed as I pressed the button, revealing the blonde's face.

"Oh, Ash! Tell me when you phone next time. I was this close to fining you!" Barry held up two fingers a small distance apart.

"Okay." I sighed. "I was just wondering if you'd like to visit me in Pallet." I told him.

"No can do, Ash. I have to train for my next gym battle! I have to go now!" He waved energetically.

"What region are you in?" I asked him.

"None of your business, that's where! Later!" his face disappeared, leaving me in confusion. I looked at the server location, but it displayed 'UNKNOWN'. I sighed, then dialled more numbers. I went on for about an hour, calling friend after friend, but they all seemed to be busy with family or training. I stepped into the kitchen and found my mom with salad.

"How many are coming, dear?" she asked me as she started tossing the leaves.

"Only a few. Everyon'e busy. The Maples are coming, Misty, Dawn and her mother, Ritchie, and Paul." I said as I sat down.

"I see." she said plainly, continuing with her food preparations. I went upstairs and found Pikachu sleeping on my bed.

"So this is where you've been, buddy." I sat down on the bed, stroking his fur gently. He yawned, then looked up at me. He smiled as he jumped on my shoulder. "Morning, buddy. What do you say to a walk?" Pikachu nodded happily, then I walked downstairs. I stepped out the door and headed down the path. I put my hands in my pockets as I walk with Pikachu on my shoulder.

"It's nice out here. Isn't it, Pikachu?" I turned to my best friend as the gently breeze stirred around. "It's been a while since we took a walk, hasn't it?" I asked him again, replied by a nod. I sat on a quiet hill, and watched the sunset. "Wow...I've never really seen it before...it's beautiful..." I said, stroking Pikachu under the chin. Pikachu cooed and we watched the sunset together. When it began to grow dark, I walked home. Pikachu had grown tired so I carried the sleeping mouse in my arms. When I got home, I was greeted by my mother.

"Ash, you shouldn't be out so late. You could have missed your friends." she put a hand on her hip as I stepped inside.

"Sorry. I guess I lost track of time." I rubbed the back of my head and smiled. Then, there was a knocking sound.

"You were very close, mister." my mom said as she opened the door. I looked past her to see a man in a white labcoat. Beside him was a younger boy in labcoat, and another boy with an orange t-shirt and green shorts.

"Gary! Tracey! Professor Oak, too! Come in, come in!" my mother stepped to the side and smiled as they stepped inside.

"Thank you, Ms. Ketchum." Tracey and Gary replied together.

"Ah, Ash! How have you been, my boy?" Professor Oak put his hand on my shoulder.

"Great, Professor. It's good to see you three again." I looked at the three smiling men. I heard another knock, so I set Pikachu on the couch and stepped past the boys to get to the door. My mom invited them into the kitchen, so the room was empty for more visitors. I opened the door to see a boy my height. He was wearing matching green pants and shirt, with two black lines down his chest and each leg. He had atop his head a green cap with a lightning bolt on it.

"Hey, Ash!" my old friend greeted me.

"Good to see you, Ritchie. Come on in, make yourself comfortable." I let him in, and he stepped into the kitchen after hearing the others. I smiled, then sat on the couch. I stroked Pikachu's fur as it slept peacefully. I heard the others in the kitchen laughing, having a friendly conversation. I heard anothe tapping noise, and figured it was Misty. I opened the door to feel myself pushed back, but luckily I didn't fall. I looked down to surprisingly see May, face in my chest and hugging me tightly. I looked up to see Max adjusting his glasses. Norman and Caroline were smiling behind him.

"Hello again, Ash." Caroline smiled to me.

"We should see each other more often, Ash." Norman joined his wife in smiling.

"Yes, I agree. Come on in." I waved my arm towards myself, gesturing them inside. They stepped inside and closed the door behind them. I smiled to them. Now, May had begun to loosen her grip. "Any chance of me actually seeing you, May?" I whispered into her ear. I felt my stomach expand as I breathed, and saw May take a step back. I noticed she was now wearing a blue blouse with a white pokeball design on her left. I saw her bandana had turned blue, and her sneakers were green.

"Did you find a great shop on the way?" I laughed, joined by Norman and Caroline. I noticed Max had froze up, but saw May with her hands on her hips.

"It was a great store." she replied, then smiled.

"Well, let's try the greeting again." I chuckled.

"Hi, Ash." she replied sweetly.

"Hello, May." I answered back to her. Norman and Caroline had stepped in the kitchen, while Max, may and I sat in the living room.

"How good of a trainer are you, Max?" I asked the boy.

"Awesome!" He pumped his fist in the air, then everyone laughed. I heard another knock, so I answered it. I opened the door and saw my orange-haired friend. I saw her hair blowing in the small breeze, wearing her blue top and yellow shorts. I smiled at her.

"Hello, Misty." I greeted her. I was takenback when she hugged me.

"Hi, Ash. We haven't seen each other in a while." she said as she pulled back.

"I've been gett that all day." I sighed. "Come on in, you're the last of the day." I stepped to the side to let her in. She looked around, then noticed May and Max.

"I was beaten here by people from Hoenn?" Misty asked me with a surprised tone.

"yes." I replied plainly.

"I didn't think I was going _that _slow." Misty said. May stood up and hugged the gym leader, then Max. "Have you remembered what we talked about on Mt. Moon?" Misty asked the boy.

"Yes, of course." Max replied.

"What? You never told me about that." May looked at the boy. Misty giggled as she stepped into the kitchen to join the older group. May, Ash and Max talked about Max's travels.

"So you saw the Kimono Girls' performance?" Ash asked him.

"Yes. I was surprised it was good." Max smirked, making May grab his ear.

"Are you saying dancing is boring?" she asked in a threatening tone.

"No! No! Please, let me go!" Max pleaded desperately, then his sister let go of him.

"Don't talk about dancing like that again." she glared at the boy.

"May, give him a break." I put my hand on her shoulder, making her look at me. She stared for a bit, then nodded. Max laughed quietly to himself, then my mom called for dinner. We ate the large feast until everyone was twice their normal size. Except Misty and Caroline, who tried to keep their figure. May, however, chowed down like me. my mom pulled out a sheet of paper.

"Alright, everyone! I made this arrangement for sleeping, so direct all complaints to me." my mom stated as she placed the paper on the table. Everyone looked at the sheet with curiosity, some having a bad feeling. Like me. And I was right.

"Why do I have to sleep outside?" I complained to her.

"Because you're used to travelling and can go without a bed for a few nights." she replied, taking a sip of tea. I sighed, then grabbed a sleeping bag from upstairs. I came back down to see Misty, Max, May, Tracey and Ritchie standing at the front door.

"What are you guys doing? You get to sleep on the floor inside." I said, looking at the group.

"We're going to join you outside." Tracey said.

"We gave Norman and Caroline the spare bed, and your mother gets her own. Professor Oak got the other spare bed, and Gary went back to the lab for the night. We didn't want to take the floor, so we decided to give you company." Misty added with a smile.

"You can't be out there alone." Max crossed his arms. I smiled, then everyone stepped outside with a sleeping bag in their hand. I felt something grab my hand, and turned to see May.

"What's up?" I asked her, but then she hugged me.

"You can't be out here alone." she whispered in my ear, then she pulled back and followed the others. I was confused, but followed. The others didn't know a good place, so I lead them to a small hill near my house.

"It's so cute up here!" Misty clapped her hands together, looking at the small are with the single tree.

"I used to come up here to think when I was little." I told them as I watched them lie their sleeping bags out. I realized there was going to be a little shortage of space on the ground.

"What now?" Ritchie asked as he looked at the five sleeping bags on the ground. I looked at the tree, then decided.

"I'll take treetop." I said as I climbed on a large branch in the tree.

"Ash! you can't sleep there!" I heard Max shout to me.

"Sure I can. Don't worry." I said as I lied down on the branch. Surprisingly, there was a lot of space for me to roll around on. I looked down to see everyone climbing in their bags, but May was looking up at me. She shook her head, then lied in her sleeping bag. I stared at her, then leaned back.

"Good night!" everyone said to each other, then fell into slumber.

**END**


	2. Advanceshipping

**Lunar Love**

(May's POV)

I awoke with a startle. I felt my heart beating as if it were on fire. Then I looked around, and realized it was a bad dream. I sighed relievingly. I looked around the hill, watching everyone sleep peacefully. I saw Max closest to me, making me smile. I ran my fingers through his hair, feeling how similiar it had become to Ash's. I looked at Misty, who was mumbling in her sleep. I heard her saying things like 'draw a picture of me', which made me giggle. I saw Tracey and Ritchie sleeping near the other side of the hill. Ritchie was tossing and turning, and I think Tracey was drawing in his sleep. His hands were doing the motions. I finally looked up, and saw Ash sleeping peacefully in the tree.

I smiled, then held my hand to my heart. What was this feeling? I decided to take a little stroll, take the tension off from the dreams. I stood up quietly and tiptoed down the hill.

I held my hands together behind my back, admiring the small town as I went. Soon, I came to a small forest. I decided to go in a bit, but not too far. I looked around and saw pidgeys sleeping in their nests. Rattatas were sleeping in the tall grass and under rocks. Before I knew it, I was deep in the trees. I looked around, trying to remember the way I came. I saw two large trees standing right beside each other, towering over like a large sudowoodo. It creeped me out.

But as I looked at the wood, I saw a peak of light coming from between them. They were surrounded by lots of tinier trees, so I wondered what the light could be. I closed my one eye and peeked through the crack. I saw a large glimmering area of blue. I squeezed my head through, then tried to pull the rest of myself through the gap. I heard a popping noise as my hips passed through, sending me tumbling onto the soft grass. I rubbed my back, then looked around. I was in a confined area, surrounded by trees. In the middle was a large, beautiful lake. I saw streaks of moonlight peeking through the treetops and reflecting off the water. I stared in awe at the mysterious sight.

"Well, looks like someone found it." I jumped nearly four feet at the sound of the voice. I snapped my neck around to see the person who startled me.

"Oh. Ash," I sighed relievingly as he walked towards me. I noticed he didn't have Pikachu with him. "Don't scare me like that." I put my hand on my hip.

"Sorry." he said, then looked at the lake. I looked at the lake with the boy standing next to me. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" he looked back at me.

"It is." I smiled, then looked back at the shimmering surface.

"You know, May, you're one of the first people to see this." Ash said.

"What?" I asked him. "How can someone miss this lake?" I asked him.

"You see, this area is a forest. So the lake is hidden by the trees." he said as he sat down. "I discovered this when I was a child." he told me.

"_Was?" _I giggled, making him look at me.

"Yes. Was." he sighed. I stopped laughing and sat beside him.

"Am I the only other who knows?" I asked him.

"Yes. Only us two, now." he said, dipping his fingers in the water. I dipped mine in, too. The water gently slid over my finger as I lowered it. It felt amazing. "Can I ask you something, May?" he asked suddenly.

"Of course, Ash." I smiled at him.

"Well...If you really wanted something...would you jump at any opportunity to get it?" I was confused at his question.

"Well...no, I guess not...depending on what it is you're trying to get. If it's coordinating, entering every contest would be difficult and tiring. Same about gym battles." I told him, thinking I answered his question.

"...Well, that's not quite what I meant...I meant...more of a person." he said.

"What do you mean?" I was really curious now.

"Well...more specifically, a girl..." I saw a tinge of red creep on his cheeks.

"You mean, like...love?" I asked him. Ash in love?

"...Yes." I mentally gasped, not wanting to hurt his feelings. Ash was in love! I was so proud of my dense little Ash! Wait,_ my dense little Ash? _Did I just think that?

"Who is it?" I scooted closer to him.

"I can't tell you." he said, making me frown.

"Why not? We're friends. You can trust me." I put my hand on his, making his face go redder.

"Well...I can't tell you yet." he answered, not taking his eyes off the lake.

"Teeeell meee!" I said like a little girl and plsced my head on his shoulder, wrapping my arms around his chest.

"I'm sorry...I just want you to help me answer the question first." he said, reminding me that I didn't properly answer him.

"Oh, right! Well...I've never been in that situation...but girls do like it when he takes them somewhere romantic." I looked up at him.

"What else?" he didn't look down.

"Well...the boy should be funny...charming...the kind of guy who would sweep her off her feet." I replied, thinking about some experiences of my past.

"Sweep her off her feet?" he repeated, I saw his eyes glance down but his body didn't move.

"Exactly. She wants the dream guy. Prince Charming. The boy to complete her life." I smiled at him, I saw his lips curl up a little.

"Anything else?" he asked me.

"Hmm...Not that I know of." I replied, looking out at the lake. I saw a group of butterfree fly out from the trees, their wings shining as they flew over the lake. I stared in awe at the magnificent sight.

"The butterfree are having their mating season. It's the most beautiful time in their lifetime." Ash pointed to a few down by the water's surface where some butterfrees were dancing around each other.

"I've heard of that." I said, remembering about what my dad told me about butterfree. "So, Ash, do you come here often?" I asked him.

"Yep. Almost every night before sunset, I walk out here to see this sight. Hoping it will never leave my mind." Ash replied to me. I smiled, knowing that forgetting this would be a big disappointment. I yawned, beginning to feel sleepy. My eyelids felt heavy. I looked up at Ash, who was smiling at me. "You want to head back?" he asked me. I nodded and yawned again, but felt the darkness consume me before I stood up.

(Ash's POV)

I watched her eyes close and her head softly hit my lap. I smiled, then stroked my fingers through her brown hair. She looked strange without her bandana on, but I didn't mind. She still looked beautiful. Wait, did I just think that? Was Brock right back in Hoenn? About me...? I looked down at May, seeing her cluthing on my shirt. I saw her eyes squint tighter, as if she didn't want to see something. I gently took her head off me, and stood up. I crouched beside her, then slipped my arms under her body. I lifted her up in my arms. I felt her grip on my shirt get tighter, then she lurched forward suddenly.

"Ash!" she cried out. She rubbed her eyes, then began to look around.

"I'm right here, May." I answered. She looked up at me, then wrapped her arms around my chest.

"Thank goodness..." she whispered quietly. She let go of me, then looked down. "Um...why are you holding me?" I saw her cheeks begin to go red.

"You fell asleep, so I was carrying you back to the hill. But then you woke up." I told her. She nodded, then looked at the ground.

"...Are you just going to hold me all night?" I went red as I saw her smiling face, mocking me. I smiled, then let her down on her feet. She stood beside me, then smiled. "Thanks." she said.

"Well, let's head back." I said, starting towards the gap. I stopped as I felt something grab my hand. I turned back to see May holding me back, smiling.

"What's the rush?" she asked. i was confused since she said she wanted to go not five minutes ago. "I was comfy in our position earlier." she said as she sat down. She patted the grass beside her, beckoning me to sit down. I sat beside her, then felt her place her head on my shoulder and wrap her arms around my side again.

"Um...May?" I said unsteadily. She smiled up at me.

"Yes?" she asked sweetly, making the cheek rise to my cheeks. She giggled.

"You're cute when you're nervous." she giggled.

"I'm cute?" I asked her, knowing the result. Just as I thought, she stopped and started stuttering.

"Um...well...you see..." I watched her desperately try to think of a reason of her wording. I put my finger on her lips, making her look up at me with her sapphire eyes. Wait, what's happening to me?

"I think you're the cute-when-nervous one." I chuckled, giving her a soft kiss on her forehead. I saw her cheeks go tomato-red.

"Ash...you..just..." I put my finger on her lips again.

"What's a kiss between friends?" I asked her. I saw her thinking about the phrase, making me laugh slightly. She began giggling too, probably knowing she thought too much about it.

"Yes; I think I am." she said. I thought about it, then figured she was talking about my statement of her being cute.

"Of course you are." I said without thinking, making her smile at me.

"where is this coming from? This romantic side I've never seen before." she moved her finger in a circular motion on my other shoulder.

"Well...it's been hiding." I replied. She giggled.

"I don't like it." I glanced at her. "I want to see how romantic you can be. you and me." she stood up and smiled at me.

"you and me? Now?" I began to feel funny.

"Of course. Like you said, what's a little night between friends?" she winked at me, then extended an arm. I smiled, then took her hand and stood. I didn't let go of her hand, liking the feel of her soft skin.

"So...What do you want to see?" I asked her.

"Everything." She replied with a smile. I smiled, then stepped backwards and let her fall into my arms as she stared up at me, safely supported by my arms and her one leg.

"Then we better get started." she smiled as she stared into my eyes. I held her hand, then lifted her and spun her around. When she stopped, she lifted her leg backwards and looked at me.

"not bad, Ash." she said. I smiled at her, then spun her around again. I took a step back, and held my arms out. She saw this, then took a small run towards me. I grabbed her hips and held her above my head, watching her smile down at me. I let her down gently, then took a small bow. She giggled at my gentleman act, then lifted the bottom of her pajama shirt up a bit, acting as if it were a dress. I smiled, then held my hand in the air and the other one lower.

"My lady," I said politely.

"My, my. We even know how to waltz?" she asked as her hand slipped into mine. I rubbed my thumb on her skin, then started the dance. I stepped back a step, she followed closely. We began the square-stepping motion, I imagined we were on the dancefloor of a ball, with nice music playing. This moment couldn't have gotten better. I stopped the movements, then bowed to her again. She giggled again, then I put my hand behiind my back, extending the other to her.

"Care to dance, my lady?" I asked her politely. She smiled, then took my hand. I placed my hands onn her hips, and she moved hers around my neck. We danced slow, peaceful. I saw her place her head on my shoulder. So I pulled her closer. I felt her shoes just barely touching the ends of mine. I felt our chests against each other. She raised her head off my shoulder, then smiled as we stared into each other's eyes.

"Ash..." she trailed off.

"May..." I trailed off. I noticed her eyes begin to close. Her head was getting closer. Her lips were puckering. This was my big chance. I slowly closed my eyes and lowered my head. I kept going until I felt something soft brushing against my lips. I opened one eye a little to make sure this was what I thought. It was. May's lips were laid on mine. Our bodies were pressed against each other. I smiled mentally, finally knowing what it felt like to kiss May. I opened my eyes, then saw May slowly pull back. Her eyes fluttered as she looked at me. Then her eyes went wide, and she stepped back.

"Ash! I'm so sorry! I was just caught up in the moment...!" she began to panic, making me chuckle mentally. I smiled, then put my finger on her lips.

"May..." I stopped as I was hypnotized again by the sapphire orbs in her head. I put my finger under her chin and lifted her head, I brushed my lips against hers. She looked at me with a confused expression, but looked at my lips. She leaned forward and brushed our lips together again, enjoying the feeling. I wrapped my arms around her hips again as I deepened the kiss a little. I felt her hands run through my hair. I knew I was having a passionate moment with May. I felt May's tongue softly pressing against my lip. I slowly opened my mouth, letting her tongue inside. I felt her tongue go past my lips, then find my tongue. We began to play in our mouths, pushing each other back into each other's mouths. She moaned softly as I gently explored her mouth. Due to lack of air, I felt May part her lips from mine. I looked at her, we were both panting. She looked up at me, then smiled.

"Ash...this..." I put my finger on her lips again.

"...Is real." I finished with a smile.

"...Ash...the girl..." she stopped.

"...Is you." I finished again. We both smiled to each other, then brushed our lips together again.

"Ash Ketchum...I love you." she said softly as she placed her head on my shoulder again.

"I love you too, May Maple." I whispered in her ear, but felt no movement. I looked down at her to see her sleeping soundlessly. I smiled, then lifted her up bridal-style. I carried her back to the hill quietly, somehow managing to get us through the gap. I placed her gently in her sleeping bag, then zipped the bag up around her. I lowered my head and kissed her softly on her forehead. I climbed back in the tree, then got comfortable beside Pikachu. Ash closed his eyes, thinking about the night events that just occured. Ash smiled to himself, then felt slumber take him over.

**END**

**Cute? Terrible? Please tell, I don't know. I've decided on the final shippings, so don't request or complain. I will announce them at the ending of the next chapter, so check it out.**

**R&R!**


	3. Chapter 3

**The Game of Cupid Begins**

(Normal POV)

Ash woke up early, as usual. He yawned as he stretched his arms behind his head. He looked down to see Pikachu copying the actions of his trainer. Ash chuckled as he scratched the mouse's ears. Pikachu jumped on Ash's shoulder and smiled. He smiled back, and hopped out of the tree quietly.

"_Pika-pi, pi pikachu pika?"_

"I guess there's no fooling you." Ash sighed, then told Pikachu about the night. Everything with May. Pikachu gasped as he ended.

_"Pika-pi! Pikachu pika pi, pi chu pikachu!"_

"What do you mean, 'you don't believe it'? I told you I had a romantic side!" Ash complained to the mouse, making it laugh.

"_Pikachu pi, pika pika pika."_

"Thanks, Pikachu. You're the first to know beside me and May." Ash petted his buddy's head, making it coo happily. Ash looked down at May's sleeping figure. She appeared to be having a good dream, with a wide smile on her face. Ash smiled, then kissed her o the cheek.

"_Pika pika pika, chu." _Pikachu held his hands behind his back and leaned forward, making kissing noises.

"Be quiet! You'll wake them!" Ash whispered, looking at the others.

"_Pikachu pika, pi pi chu pika."_

I do too have a right to do that!" Ash replied to the mouse as he walked back to his house. Ash stepped in the front door and saw Mimie cleaning the coffee table. "Morning, Mimie." Ash greeted the pokemon. Mr. Mime smiled back, then went back to cleaning. Ash stepped in the kitchen and saw his mother with a cup of coffee and the paper.

"Morning, honey." she said as she noticed him approach the table.

"Morning, Mom. Where's-" Ash stopped as he saw Delia lift a plate of food from under the table and place it in front of him. Ash smiled at her, then ate the food.

"What happened last night, honey?" this question caught Ash by surprise.

"What do you mean?" he asked casually.

"I mean to say is something happened last night. You're not eating in your normal chow-down fashion." Ash heard his mother answer. he looked down and noticed she was right. A small amount of food was on the fork, and a lot was still left.

"Nothing happened last night, just some nice dreams." Ash replied.

"They weren't dreams. You were with May, weren't you?" Ash suddenly began choking on his small spoonful of food. he swallowed safely, then looked at his mother.

"What? W-Why would you say t-that?" Ash asked, trying to maintain cool.

"Mother's intuition, sweetie. Plus, you're making it pretty obvious." she rubbed her hand on Ash's cheek, feeling the large amount of heat stored inside.

"...Well..." Ash rubbed the back of his neck, wondering if he should tell her. But more importantly, if he can trust her.

"You can tell you mother, dear." she told her son. Ash sighed.

"...Fine. But don't tell the others. I want the truth to come from me." he said, then proceeded to tell the tale of the passionate night. He excluded the personal details between them, not wanting to make his mother give him a lecture.

"oh, dear..." she started, then smiled. "...that's wonderful news! My Ashy got a girlfriend!" she beamed, making Ash sigh quietly.

"I'm regretting this already..." he mumbled quietly to himself. They heard the frnot door close. They both looked to see the brunette yawning and stroking her hair.

"Good morning, Ms. Ketchum." she greeted as she sat in a chair.

"Good morning, May." Delia replied with a cheery smile.

"Good morning, Ash." May's cheeks became a light shade of pink, only noticed by two.

"Good morning, May. Sleep good?" Ash asked.

"Wonderful. Thanks for asking. Is there-" she stopped when a plate of food was placed in front of her. She smiled at Delia, who was now sipping her tea. May began to eat calmly, small spoonfulls. Then she stopped and looked at Ash. She leaned over a bit, followed by Ash so Delia wouldn't quite hear. "I need to talk to you later." she whispered.

"If it's about last night, you don't need to whisper." Ash whispered back. may tilted her head in confusion, then understood.

"You told?" she asked him.

"Yes he did, dear." they looked over to see Delia smiling. "I think it's cute." she said. Ash and May glanced at each other.

"...She's wanted me to get commited for years." Ash sighed, making May giggle.

"Even my mom doesn't get this excited." May giggled.

"I don't get excited about what, dear?" May froze as she heard the feminine voice behind. She turned to see her mother and father stepping into the room.

"Morning, mom, dad." May greeted nervously.

"What wouldn't I get as excited about?" Caroline asked as she sat down.

"yes, May, do tell." Norman said as he sat beside his wife.

"Um..." Ash and may glanced at each other nervously, wondering if they should say.

"Just a kid's thing, Norman. you know how they are." Delia answered for the nervous kids.

"Ah, I see." Norman was still a little foggy, though.

"So, May. how'd you sleep?" Caroline asked her daughter.

"Great." May replied calmly.

"That's good. It's nice to hear you are sleeping well again." Norman said as he poured some coffee into two empty mugs.

"I agree. I'm sure May just had something on her mind. We all know how she is when she thinks too much." Ash chuckled as he put his hand on her shoulder.

"What does that mean, Ash?" May glared at the boy.

"Um...So how are you doing, Mr. and mrs. Maple?" Ash changed the topic to the adults.

"Great, Ash. I was wondering if we could have a battle later today." Norman said, making the boy excited.

"Of course! I've wondered if you've gotten stronger!" Ash jumped up in excitement.

"Calm down, Ash. I said later." Norman began to laugh, followed by the three women in the room. Ash sat down and began eating again.

"So, Caroline, have you heard of that robbery in Saffron?" Delia asked the woman.

"yes, I did! That was some crime! We heard it on the ship while we were travelling to Kanto." Caroline replied.

"But who would want to steal from Silph Co.?" Norman asked.

"Well, Team Rocket is known to have originated in Kanto. Plus, they had a plan ruined at Silph Co. a while ago. I'm sure they're after revenge." Delia pointed out. The adults began takling about the Saffron robbery, while May dragged Ash out of the room. Norman noticed his daughter pulling the boy.

"What's that about?" Norman asked the women.

"Like Delia said, kid's stuff." Caroline said as she sipped the coffee.

"Well, there is actually something." Delia told the two.

"May, did you really have to drag me?" Ash groaned as he rubbed his neck.

"Yes. You called me stupid." May replied.

"No I didn't! I said..." he stopped when he saw the girl's eyes, knowing he would only corner himself.

"Well, that's not why I dragged you out here. I wanted to talk about...last night." she whispered the last words. Ash nodded, then brought her into his room. May sat on his bed.

"What about it?" Ash asked as he sat beside her.

"I was just wondering..." Ash put his finger on her lips.

"It was real, it was true, and it was amazing." he told her.

"...Okay." May replied. Ash smiled, then kissed her on the cheek. "be careful. My parents are here and could coem in any moment. Not to mention our friends." May whispered, reminding him.

"Right. Sorry. It just seemed like the right thing to do." Ash replied. May smiled, then gave him a peck on the lips.

"There, now we're good. If we ever get some time alone." May said as she stood up.

"So, does this mean we're a couple...or what?" Ash asked as he stood beside her. May smiled, then brushed her lips against his. She wrapped her arms around his neck, and he around her hips. She pulled away and brushed her legs.

"Couple. Hidden, at least." May said, then opened the door. Ash followed her out, then stepped downstairs. They stepped in the kitchen, seeing the three adults still talking. When they noticed the kids, Norman stood up.

"Hey, Ash, what do you say to that battle right now? I could use a wake-up call." Norman said, making the boy excited.

"Okay! See you, May!" Ash ran into the living room with Norman, then they heard the frotn door close. May smiled, then saw the two women. Delia was smiling, and Caroline was smiling with her arms crossed.

"Uh-oh..." May realized.

"So, Norman, want a grass battlefield?" Ash asked the man as he walked. He felt Norman's hand on hs shoulder and stop him.

"We need to talk, Ash." Norman said sternly, making the boy shudder. Suddenly, his mind clicked.

"Uh-oh..." Ash whispered to himself.

"Ash, I trust you. As a friend. When it comes to my daughter, I become fairly concerned." he said as he stepped towards the boy.

"_How _concerned?" Ash asked nervously as he stepped back.

"Fairly. Ash, May is my daughter. And after hearing the news frmo last night, you become on my special watch list." Norman said.

"And the specialty about me is...?" Ash felt his back hit a tree.

"You're special to May, you're extra-special to me. I'm going to watch you and May and observe your feelings and actions. If it's deeper than I thought, I'll give you 100% in the relationship. But if she feels sad or mad about you..." Norman stopped when Ash raised his hand.

"I get it." Ash brought his hand across his neck.

"Of course not, Ash!" the man began to laugh, soon followed by Ash. "I'm not going to kill you. I'll make you suffer." Ash froze as he stared at the man. Soon, he began laughing again. "It's hilarious how you believe it so quickly! Come on, my wife and your mother should be done with May by now." Norman said as he stopped laughing, then headed back to the front door. Ash was now concerned for May. When they got home, Ash hurried to see May, Caroline and his mother sitting in the kitchen. Delia was smiling and having coffee. Caroline was wagging her finger in the air, while May was a shade of red deeper than her old bandana. When she noticed Ash, she hurried to his side.

"Oh, Ash! Thank goodness you're here!" she glanced back at the women, who were now laughing together. Norman began laughing as he remember his encounter with Ash, then sat beside his wife again.

"You're okay?" Ash asked May, glancing at the laughing adults.

"I'm fine." she replied, the shade of red not completely gone from her cheeks.

"So..." Ash trailed off.

"Everyone's fine with it." Delia answered her son. Everyone smiled, then began to laugh.

"Okay, at least I'm alive." Ash laughed, then noticed Norman staring at him, not laughing. He stopped immediately, then the man laughed again. Ash noticed May was enjoying this.

"May, stop laughing at me!" ash cmplained.

"I'm not laughing at you, I'm laughing because of you." May giggled. Ash took a moment of pause.

"Wait...that means the same thing!" everyone began laughing at the boy, even him. When they stopped, May brought Ash into his room again.

"Well, now we just need to tell our friends." May said as she sat beside Ash on his bed.

"Yeah." Ash agreed. He looked over at May, who was smiling at him. He smiled, then pulled her bandana over her eyes. She quickly adjusted it then glared at the boy.

"Hey!" she pulled his hat over his eyes then pushed him on his back. Ash lifted the hat to see May on top of him, smiling.

"Well, how did this happen?" Ash rolled his eyes. May giggled, then pressed her lips against his. Ash wrapped his arm around her, then she pulled away and stood up. She brushed her legs, then helped him up.

"I'm still going to have to get used to this..." May sighed, looking at Ash.

"Come on, it's not that bad...except maybe when Max finds out." Ash thought about him taunting her.

"Thanks for the good thought." May said sarcastically.

You know...I know something that girls always want to play." Ash told her.

"What? Dollhouse?" May giggled, knowing a girl's favorite game.

"No. Involving people, and it will work perfectly with this reunion." Ash said.

"What is it?" May asked, intrigued.

"Cupid." Ash said as the sound of a doorbell filled the house.

**END**

**Dun dun duuun! Who's at the door? Dawn? Paul? The group of sleepy-heads? R&R!**

**_Permanent shippings: Advanceshipping, Ikarishipping, Orangeshipping._**

**_Hinted shippings: Pearlshipping, pokeshipping, Showoffshipping._**


	4. Chapter 4

**Love Call**

"You really do know girls, don't you?" May asked her new boyfriend as they approached the front door.

"Of course I do. Now, May, let the game of Cupid begin." Ash said, then turned the handle and opened the door. They saw one female, and three boys yawning.

"Morning, Ash." Misty greeted cheerfully.

"Morning, Mist'." Ash replied as she stepped passed him. He turned to the guys.

"Morning, Ash." Max said with a yawn.

"Morning, Max. Come in, let's get you awake." Ash said as he let them inside. The four newcomers stepped into the kitchen, and May and Ash heard Delia greeting them.

"Well, Ash, how is this game supposed to work?" May asked as she tugged on his arm.

"Don't women have an ability of seeing true love? And weren't _you_ the one to say that?" Ash wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

"Oh, Ash..." she punched him lightly on the arm and giggled. Ash smiled, then opened the door.

"I'm going for a little walk. Be back in a few minutes." Ash told her.

"Okay, hurry back. I don't want the others asking about certain things." May said as her cheeks turned a light pink.

"What do you mean?" Ash arched an eyebrow.

"Well..." May rubbed her arm. "...A while back.I may have told Misty about my feelings for you...and she might have agreed to help." May said nervously, making Ash smile.

Oh, May...never could keep your mouth shut, huh?" Ash asked before quickly closing the door. May opened the door to yell at him, but saw him running down the path. She felt something hit her leg, and looked down to see Pikachu sprinting after his trainer. She giggled, then closed the door and joined the others in the kitchen.

"_Pika-pi!"_

"Hey, Pikachu!" Ash smiled as his best friend climbed on his shoulder.

"_Pika pika, chu pi!"_

" Good morning to you, too. Again." Ash laughed, then looked at Pikachu's face. His eyebrow was raised, and his lips formed a smirk.

_Pika-pi, pika pika chu kachu?"_

"What! No! I wouldn' do that!" Ash blushed deeply as his friend laughed.

"_Pika pika pika pika! Chu pi?"_

"Yes, I'm sure! She's my best friend!" Ash replied, then noticed Pikachu's cheeks sparking. "Human friend." he corrected himself, then felt Pikachu nuzzle his cheek against his. "Besides, she's even more special to me now. You know I wouldn't do anything like that." Ash told him.

"_Pika-pi, chu pikachu kachupi."_

"What do you mean, we need another talk?" Ash asked him. After a few minutes, the argument was over and they were back at the house. "I still say I won that conversation." Ash said as he held the doorknob.

"_Pika..."_

"Okay, you won!" Ash defended himself, then the mouse's cheeks stopped sparking. He opened the door, then Ash felt himself pushed in. He felt something heavy on his back, and turned around to see blue hair.

"Ash!"

He smiled, realizing what it was. He looked down to see the blue and pink skirt from the phone, then tapped her shoulder.

"Dawn, can I get up?" Ash asked, making her look up at him. She turned her head to see her body covering his, then turned a deep red. She quickly got off him and helped him up.

"Sorry, just excited to see you again." she held her hands behind her back and smiled. Ash smiled back, then noticed another woman stepping in the house. Dawn turned around and saw her mother.

"What'd she do, Ash?" Johanna asked as she noticed the red on Dawn's face.

"N-Nothing! Nothing at all!" Dawn waved her arms, making Ash and Johanna laugh.

"Hello again, Ms. Ber...Johanna." Ash corrected himself.

"You, too, Ash. We should visit more often." Johanna replied.

"Now how many times have I heard that recently?" Ash asked sarcastically, making the women giggle. He heard footsteps, then turned to see his mother in the doorway.

"Why, Johanna! And Dawn, too! Come in, make yourself comfortable!" Delia motioned them to the couch or kitchen. Johanna stepped in the kitchen, and Dawn sat quietly on the couch. Ash stepped slowly towards the door.

"So, Dawn, how's your contests?" he asked.

"Good. I'm taking a break at the moment, but I'm doing great." she replied cheerfully. Ash smiled as he began to close the door, but felt something push it back. He looked back to see a face with a small smirk.

"Change your mind?" the voice asked in a sarcastic way.

"Hey, Paul. Good to see you." Ash opened the door and let him in. Paul stepped inside, then noticed Dawn. "You invited her, too?" Paul asked him. Dawn heard this, and was slightly offended.

"Am I annoying or something to you?" Dawn crossed her arms as Paul sat on the couch beside her.

"No. I was just surprised, is all." Paul replied calmly.

"How you been, Paul?" Ash asked as he sat on the couch across from them.

"Good. Anything new happen while you missed me?" Paul smirked.

"Who said I missed you?" Ash asked him.

"Well, one, you consider me a friend. Two, I'm one of the best trainers you've fought, face it." Paul told him.

"I've battled plenty of trainers stronger than you." Ash replied. He noticed Dawn quickly looking at them as they spoke.

"May be true, may not." Paul replied. Then, a female stepped in the room.

"Did someone call me?" the brunette asked. The three looked at her, then Dawn jumped up and hugged her.

"Hi, May! It's been too long!" she said excitedly.

"Dawn? Wow! It has!" May said, returning the hug. Ash and Paul looked at each other, then Paul made a talking gesture with his hand. Ash laughed quietly and nodded. The girls parted and Dawn sat in her previous spot, while May sat beside Ash.

"May, how have you been?" Dawn asked her.

"Great." May replied, then noticed Paul beside her. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't notice you. Are you...the Paul I've heard about?" she asked as she extended her hand toward him.

"What exactly have you heard?" he glanced at Ash as he returned the handshake.

"Well, you're a strong trainer...new friend from Sinnoh...and something about mistreating pokemon..." May thought out loud.

"I've changed, Ketchum." Paul looked at Ash.

"Wel, it was around the Wallace Cup when I told her about you. That was a while ago." Ash rubbed the back of his head. Paul smirked, then looked toward Dawn. He caught a glimpse of her staring at him, then she quickly looked away. He looked over at May, who was looking at Dawn with a confused expression. Then something surprised him. He noticed May's hand was on Ash's. Paul looked at Dawn to see if she saw this, but she looked to be daydreaming. Paul sighed, then stood.

"Ash, can I talk to you about something?" he asked him.

"Sure." Ash stood, then they walked upstairs to his room.

"What do you think that's about?" Dawn asked, snapping out of her trance.

"Guy stuff. You know them." May told her.

"Actually, I don't. I've never really been close to a boy. How do you know?" Dawn asked her.

"Um...Ash and my brother, that's it." May replied, hoping she would accept it.

"...Okay!" she replied cheerfully, making the brunette sigh relievingly. Meanwhile, Ash sat on his bed and Paul stood over him.

"What's up?" he asked him.

"How cute. Little Ash got a girl." Paul smirked teasingly, making Ash go red.

"W-What? I don't know what y-you're talking a-about." Ash stuttered as he played with his thumbs.

"Even cuter. He's nervous!" Paul began laughing, surprising Ash.

"This makes you laugh?" he asked him.

"Yes! This is funny! I never would have thought of you getting a girlfriend!" he calmed his laughter.

"What made you think this?" Ash stood beside him.

"I saw your girlfriend down there put her hand on yours, and you didn't go red or move. I can't believe this." Paul chuckled as he wrapped an arm around Ash's neck.

"Oh...I'm meaning to work on that..." Ash said as Paul pulled his arm off.

"Did you seriously think I'm too stupid to realize love? Don't underestimate me." Paul told him.

"You see human love, but not pokemon love?" Ash smiled.

"Past is past. Is this a secret? Have you told anyone?" he asked him.

"Sort of and no. And I'd appreciate it if you didn't say anything, please." Ash told him.

"All right, but don't complain if I tease youevery now and then. You have to admit, this is funny." Paul began laughing as he stepped out of the room. Ash shook his head as he followed him. Ash looked over to see the girls staring confusingly at the laughing Paul. The girls walked beside Ash.

"Ash, why do I see something wrong with this picture?" Dawn whispered to him.

"No reason, Dawn." Ash replied. She nodded, then stepped into the kitchen with the others. Ash heard everyone greet her in the other room.

"Funny conversation with Paul, Ash?" Ash jumped as he realized May was still beside him.

"...To him, it was." Ash replied, then noticed May cross her arms.

"What's up? I can read you, Ash." she told him.

"...Okay...he might have discovered...us..." Ash told her, then noticed her cringe.

"How did he know?" she asked.

"Someone can't keep their hands off." Ash smirked, making her giggle nervously.

"I can't help it. I don't like keeping secrets." May replied, saw Ash wasn't looking at her. She followed his gaze and saw he was staring at Paul. She saw him, then he winked to the two, then stepped in the kitchen. "He isn't going to tease us, is he?" she sighed.

"...That might have been mentioned..." Ash scratched the back of his head. They walked upstairs and in Ash's room, closing the door behind them.

"Ash, I don't know how long I can keep this up." May said as she fell onto his bed.

"I don't know, either. Plus, we have to keep up with Paul's teasing." Ash said as he lied beside her.

"Come on, we have to think of something. We can't tell them, and we can't keep it from them. What do we do?" she asked as she looked up at him.

"...If we don't tell...and don't keep...there's one thing left. Slip of the tongue." Ash said.

"...How do we do that? Just walk in the room and accidentally say 'oh, I love being a couple'?" May asked sarcastically.

"Not in that specific way, but something like that. Maybe we can show signs and let them figure it out themselves." Ash said again.

"This is more confusing than I thought..." May sighed.

"I know. But I guess we can turn to the cupid game. We have three different missions." Ash said as May leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Please stop talking video-game." May said.

"Fine. We have three different groups we can set up, that would be compatible." Ash told her.

"Compatible? You know what, never mind. I don't want to know. Okay, so who?" May asked him.

"Well, there's-" Ash stopped as they heard the door. They looked over to see Paul leaning against the doorframe, smiling with his arms crossed.

"Just making sure you're keeping it clean. Have fun." Paul's smirk grew as he turned around.

"Shut up, Paul!" Ash shouted before the door closed.

"Wow, Ash, I didn't think he'd set you off so easily." May giggled.

"You don't know how long he can go with a topic, and he has a way of getting in my mind." Ash replied. May giggled, then leaned up and gave him a peck on the lips.

"You're cute this way." May said sweetly as she stood up. Ash stood behind her and wrapped an arm around her hip.

"Just this way?" Ash whispered in her ear.

"Not saying." May whispered as she squirmed from his grip. She turned and winked at him before leaving the room. She reached the bottom of the stairs and noticed Paul on the couch. She turned to Ash behind her, annd saw him shaking his head.

"What?" Paul asked innocently, but still wore the smirk from earlier.

"I'll get you back soon, Paul. Sooner than you think." Ash replied, then Paul's smirk disappeared. May giggled as she stepped in the kitchen. She noticed no one was there, then looked back at Paul.

"Where is everyone?" she asked him.

"Shopping. I'm here to keep you clean." Paul began laughing again. Ash frowned, then heard the door. He looked over to see Max step in.

"Hey, guys." Max greeted them.

"Max, why didn't you go shopping?" Ash asked him.

"Are you kidding me! I would have to carry most of the bags! I'm sorry I betrayed my dad, but I'm not suffering!" Max waved his arms defensively. Ash laughed as everyone took a seat, Max beside Paul and the couple on the other couch. May, again, put her hand on his without realizing.

"So, Max, what do you think?" Paul asked him. May and Ash looked at him with confusion, then Ash's eyes went wide with realization. He looked back to see Max looking at him with serious eyes.

"Paul, what did I tell you?" Ash asked him with a strict tone.

"Nothing important." Paul's smirk grew again.

"Personally, Ash, I'm happy about this." Max said, then Ash felt May's grip tighten on his hand. He looked to see her eyes gone wide. "But. I have to say take care of her. If you mistreat her or disappoint her...I think you get the point." Max crossed his arms and smiled. Ash chuckled nervously, then glanced at May and saw her expression not changed. But her grip was getting even tighter.

"May, please calm down. My hand won't survive much longer." Ash said as he tried to squirm out of her grip. She looked down to see her grip, and quickly retracted.

"I'm so sorry!" she gasped, then looked angrily at Max.

"What? I'm telling him to take care of you!" Max told her.

"I admire your concern, but I can take care of myself." May replied angrily.

"Maybe, but your younger crushes weren't so great." Max said, then bolted out of the house, quickly followed by the angry May. Ash shook his head, then faced Paul.

"Look what you've done. I told you to tell no one." Ash told him.

"Exactly. You said _no one_. That kid's not quite the size of one." Paul replied.

"He's smaller? That's your excuse?" Ash asked. Paul nodded, then they both began laughing.

"Admit it, I'm right." Paul said after they calmed down.

"Not saying. Come on, we better go save him." Ash stood up and walked to the door. They walked outside and noticed a boy hiding in a tree. Ash sighed, then walked over to the tree. He looked around to see May walking back to the house, kicking the dirt angrily. "Come on, Max. She gave up." Ash called into the tree.

"Liar! This is an ambush!" a oice called back to him. Ash turned to see Paul laughing.

"Come on, kid. Your sister's rage is gone...for now." Paul said.

"I knew it! You're trying to lure me out so her anger will come back when I'm down!" the voice called down.

"Paul! You're not helping!" Ash shouted, making his friend laugh more. After about an hour, the three boys walked back to the house. Ash held May back as they stepped in, then she got over it. When the others got home, the women came in with small gift bags, then the guys came with larger bags.

"Oh my god, I can't feel my arms!" Tracey complained as he put the bags on the floor.

"We'll help you. Come on, Max, Paul." Ash stood up and grabbed a few bags.

"Fine, but I get Dawn's." Max said, making the guys look at him funny. "What? The youngest gets the smallest amount of stuff. I'm not taking the mother's stuff because mothers buy most." Max stated as he lifted some bags.

"Damn, I shouldn't have told him that." Norman muttered under his breath. After the bags were lifted and put away, everyone had gone to sleep from exhaustion.

**END**

**Ha ha! Poor Norman! I've alway thought of Paul doing stuff like this. Who will get paired first? And more importantly...who? R&R!**

**Clarification on the shippings; They're going to start next chapter, it will be one shipping per chapter, I will name the chapter with the shipping respectively. Have fun!**


	5. Orangeshipping

Chapter Shippings; orangeshipping, hinted pearlshipping, hinted showoffshipping

**Kiss, Kiss!**

(May's POV)

I have to admit, Ash isn't as dense as I thought. Here I thought he was a dense guy, but he showed a romantic side, he thought of playing Cupid, and now we really are!

"May?"

I opened my eyes to see Ash looking down at me. That's right, I was awake with my eyes closed, just lying on the hill. "Oh, you're awake." he smiled down to me.

"Of course I am, Ash." I lifted my head and kissed him on the lips, then he helped me up. I looked around and saw everyone still asleep. I noticed Dawn took place with her back against the tree, while Paul was in the tree. "He kicked you out?" I asked him, remembering Ash was in the tree when I fell asleep last night.

"Yeah, we woke up and he wanted top. He won our argument." Ash sighed, making me laugh quietly. We left our friends to sleep and headed for Ash's house. When we got inside, Ash's mother was, as usual, at the table with her newspaper and coffee.

"Morning, Ms. Ketchum." I said politely.

"Morning, Mom." Ash said afterwards.

"Good morning, kids. Sleep well?" she looked at us with a friendly smile.

"Great." I replied.

"Took a while, but I finally got a decent sleep. The ground is harder than the tree, surprisingly." Ash said as he rubbed his back. Ms. Ketchum and I laughed at him. The, repeating the proces of yesterday, my momand dad stepped in.

"Good morning, everyone." my dad said with a yawn.

"Morning." everyone replied. Soon, the parents were talking inthe kitchen and me and Ash were getting dressed in his room.

"Oh, I'll give you privacy." Ash said, grabbing his jeans and vest and stepping into the hallway, closing the door behind him. I laughed at his action as I got dressed, then I opened the door, finding him fully dressed and waiting. "The bathroom was open." he told me. I nodded, then heard the front door. saw Paul walk up the stairs yawning, then he noticed us.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." he gave one of his so-called 'trademark smirks' as he passed us. Once he closed the bathroom door behind him, Ash wrapped his arms arounnd me from behind.

"Who should we Cupify first?" he whispered in my ear.

"Cupify? Really?" I giggled at his wording.

"Seriously, who?" he asked again as he rolled his eyes. I don't think he knows I saw him, though.

"...I don't know...you never told me the pairings." I pointed out. He sighed, then guided me into his bedroom.

"Okay, there are three pairs I know." he said as we sat on his bed.

"_Not_ including us, right?" I asked sarcastically.

"...Oh..." I laughed at him, being so forgetful about one of the pairs being already done. "The easiest possible one I see...is Misty and Tracey." Ash told me.

"Really?" I asked him, then he nodded. "...Okay, how?" I asked him.

"Um..." apparently I hit a weak spot in his game. We stepped out of the room to put the game in play...somehow. Immediately, I noticed Paul on the couch reading a comic. He looked up at us after Ash closed his door, then smirked.

"Well, well, well. Look who decided to stop making out." I could tell he was teasing us, but seriously?

"Be quiet, Paul. Remember the deal? In fact, you already broke it with Max." Ash told him.

"I don't remember such a thing." he said innocently.

"Oh, come on, let's just call truce for a while." I told them. They looked at me, then slowly reached their hands for each other.

"...For now..." Ash said as he shook.

"...The second this stops, I'm back in it." Paul said as he took his hand back. Ash nodded, then we stepped outside. When the door opened, we noticed two sleepy figures walking down the path.

"Good morning, Dawn, Misty." I greeted the girls. They looked at me, then smiled and waved.

"Morning, girls." Ash greeted them. They both looked at Ash, then waved. Dawn stepped past Ash, but I noticed she winked and her hand touched his. I felt anger form inside me, but quickly recovered. Misty frowned, then stepped by. But on the way, she tripped and put her hand on my shoulder. She gave me a gentle push and I fell into Ash. I looked back at Misty, but she was already inside with the door closed. I shook my head a little, but luckily Ash didn't notice. We walked down the path, then soon Tracey walked by.

"Morning, Ash, May." he said to us.

"Morning, Trace'. Meet me at the lab around lunchtime, okay?" Ash told him. He nodded, then continued for the house. I smiled, then we headed for the hill to have some fun. I reached into Misty's sleeping bag and found a camera. I saw Ash pull a sketchbook from Tracey's bag, then we found what we were looking for. I found a picture of Tracey by a lakeside with water-type pokemon, and Ash found a sketch of a red-haired girl with an azurill in her arms. She wasn't quiet finished, but we were smart enough to know the finished result would be Misty. I turned off the camera, but left it on the pictures and put it on Tracey's bag. Ash slid the picture in Misty's sleeping bag halfway, so she would definitely see it. We smiled to each other, then snuck away. We went for a walk, then went back to Ash's house. Once there, we found everyone awake.

"Morning, sis." Max greeted me.

"Morning, Ash." Ritchie said to Ash.

"Morning, guys." we replied. I noticed Paul in the corner, leaning against the wall with a smile. I rolled my eyes then headed upstairs. I washed my hands and rinsed my face, then heard talking from Ash's room. I put my ear to the door, listening to the conversation.

"Admit it, Mist'. You like him."

"No! No way, Ash Ketchum!"

Alright, but you'll have to say it sooner or later. And we all would appreciate sooner."

"Quiet, Ketchum!"

Unfortunately, I got too curious and pushed the door a little. It creaked, alarming them. I noticed the door open wide, face-to-face with Ash. "Hello, May. Care to join us?" Ash asked.

"...Sure..." I said uncertainly. I stepped in and noticed the red on Misty's face. I honestly couldn't tell if it was from embarassement, or anger. Probably both, knowing her. Ash closed the door behind me, then faced Misty.

"Alright, Mist', just say it and this will be easier." Ash said.

"No! I would never say it!" she replied.

"Because of lies or shame?" he asked quickly. I guessed he was trying to trick her into admiting, but I knew it wouldn't-

"Shame!"

I looked over at her. Her hands were over her mouth, her face was serious red. I can't believe Ash tricked her. "See, was that so hard?" Ash asked her. I can't believe Ash planned this!

"You tricked me! I was lying!" Misty tried to defend herself, but we didn't buy it. Suddenly, Tracey walked in. I saw the camera in his hand, but his sketchbook was behind his back.

"Oh, am I interrupting?" he asked.

"No. Come on in." Ash replied calmly. I giggled quietly, then stopped when I saw Misty's eyes.

"I just came in because I wanted to talk to Misty about something." Tracey held out the camera to her, when her eyes hit it, they went wide and she snatched it from him.

"Where did you get this!" she hissed at him.

"W-Whoa! I just found it in my sleeping bag, that's a-all!" he said innocently. She glared at him, then smiled.

"Okay, I believe you." Misty said.

"Hey..." I noticed Ash grab Tracey's sketchbook from his hand, then look at it. "...I know this...Misty was looking at it earlier!" Ash said, everyone's eyes found Misty.

"Um..."

"Why were you in my sketchbook?" Tracey asked her.

"I found it in my sleeping bag! I knew it was yours so I put it back in your bag." Misty told him.

"But didn't you like that picture he drew, Mist'? Y'know...that red-haired girl?" Ash asked her. I was very surprised to figure out Ash planned this out so smoothly, acting calm all the way through.

"...You saw that?" Tracey asked nervously, snatching his book from Ash.

"...Y-Yeah..." Misty stutterered. I decided to take a part in this, not letting Ash have all the fun.

"Hey, Tracey, who is that anyway?" I asked him, he looked at me. "I was just wondering...I know you sketch real-life things...so who is that?" I pointed to the sketch.

"Well..." Tracey rubbed his arm and looked at the ground.

"I'm sure Misty wants to know, too." Ash said, Tracey looked at Misty. She was red and rubbing her arm too. "I mean...It's not like there's any emotional troubles here, so why not?" Ash said.

"...Well...the truth is..." Tracey was hard to get through to.

"Yeah, Tracey...who is it?" everyone looked at Misty, who was now smiling weakly. "I mean...Ash is right. No emotions, right?" she asked uncertain.

"Well...okay..." Tracey seemed hesitant, but he agreed. "She's...you...Misty." the room was quiet. I looked at Ash, who flashed a small thumbs-up to me. I nodded, then looed at the motionless Misty. She blinked...then hugged him.

"Thank you, Tracey! It's a great sketch!" Misty told him. Tracey was still suprised, but wrapped his arms around her. I nodded to Ash, then we both left the room. We closed the door for no disturbances, then walked downstairs. We saw Max and Dawn standing at the door.

"Thanks, Max!" Dawn said happily as she opened the door.

"Better shopping with you than lying around here," Max told her, then noticed Ash and me. "No offense, Ash." he said before closing the door.

"...Hm...I didn't expect this..." Ash said to himself.

"Expect what?" he jumped at my voice, but realized he was pretty loud for talking to himself. We sat on the couch, I managed to keep distant, and talked with the annoying Paul. Soon, Misty and Tracey came downstairs.

"Oooh, I understand now." Paul said as he saw them.

"What?" Ash asked as he looked at them. All three of us noticed the same thing. Misty's hand in Tracey's.

"You're pairing up everyone!" Paul told us. I for one couldn't believe he figured us out from one little clue.

"What do you mean, Paul?" Tracey asked him.

"Nothing. He's being humorous." Ash told him.

"Not humor; reality." Paul 'corrected' him. Tracey and Misty glanced at each other, then seperated their hands and stepped in the kitchen.

"One down, one to go." Ash whispered to me. I nodded with a smile, then we heard quiet laughing. We looked over at Paul.

"What are you looking at me for?" he asked innocently, stopping his laughing. I don't know who Ash's plan is for next...but I really want to get even with Paul in the field of annoyance.

**END**


	6. Chapter 6

**Annoying Paul  
**

(Ash's POV)

It was fun pairing Misty and Tracey together, just getting under Misty's skin is funny. But now, I had someone different in mind.

"What do you want, Ketchum?" Paul asked me. Since Misty and Tracey were done, I started following Paul.

"Nothing. Just some fun time together." I replied calmly, but I held back a round of evil laughter. I had plans for him he would not enjoy, I could tell.

"What kind of fun? I have a feeling I won't like it, though." Paul said, I held back laughter again.

"Nah, you'll love it." I told him, then grabbed his arm and lifted him off the couch.

"Excuse me, May, your psychotic boyfriend wants me for an unknown reason." Paul said as he looked over at May. I became angry, but didn't want to show it. May, however, began giggling like no tomorrow as I dragged him out the front door. I pulled him down the path towards the hill. "Why are we here?" he asked.

"I wanted us to have some time, man-to-man." I told him. He sighed and turned his head, but I continued. "I want you to tell me something." I said, then he looked me straight in the eye.

"You aren't going to try to pair me with someone, are you?" he asked. I can't believe he read my mind.

"No." I laughed a little, but couldn't put real effort in it. "I just wanted you to tell me who you would fancy most." I replied.

"Nice try, Ketch'. You're not getting an answer from me, and don't think I won't fall for your girlfriend's tricks, either." he said.

"They're not tricks, I just simply want an answer." I told him.

"Well good luck, it's not happening." he said again. I sighed, it wouldn't be easy to get it out of him. But a little someone came to help me...without knowing.

"Guys!" we looked to see the source of the feminine voice. A certain blunette was running up the hill towards us. "Ash! There you are!" she called.

"Hey, Dawn. What's the hurry?" I asked her.

"I've been looking for you the past half-hour. I was looking for Max, and figured you knew where he was." she told me. I noticed her glance at Paul for a brief second, I saw their eyes connect.

"Last I saw was when you took him shopping." I answered.

"Aww, the boy just seems to disappear." she sighed. "All right, thanks. Bye, Ash. Bye, Paul." she glanced at his eyes again, but she turned around just as I saw her cheeks turn pink. I looked at Paul, he had an emotionless expression. But I noticed his lips were curled slightly upwards.

"Crushin', much?" I crossed my arms and smiled. He looked at me and raised his eyebrow.

"What did you say?" I saw the anger in his eyes as he spoke. "Ash, I've known you for years now, ever since Sinnoh where I unfortunately met you. But now, you're considering me of liking someone beyond friendship? And more importantly..._her_?" he stuffed his hands in his pockets.

"The world is full of truth, lies, and myths. Paul, which category would you consider yourself?" I asked him.

"Myths. The legendary Sinnoh-native changes in unmistakable ways, that's my story." he told me as he looked in the distance.

"Admit it, Paul. You fancy Dawn, and we both know." I smiled, I was getting in his head.

"I do not, and we both know _that_. I'm leaving now." he said, then started walking down the hill. I began thinking of how to keep him talking, only one thought came up.

"What about the space-time legend?" I called to him, he stopped, but didn't look back. "Cynthia's famous words directed to you?" I asked again. He turned his head to the side.

"What are you getting at?" he asked.

"When every life meets another, something will be born? Does that ring a bell?" I asked him.

"It only applies to certain things. Destiny and Fate." He replied.

"Destiny and Fate, yes. Love and friendship, yes. Everyone meets for a reason, whether it's changing for the better…" he turned around and looked at me. "…Or living in happiness." I finished.

"So you're saying…I met someone for the purpose of making me happy?" he took a few steps towards me.

"Exactly. And not just anyone….I particularly mean Dawn." I told him.

"Your blunette friend?" he asked as he stood beside me.

"Yes. You and Dawn met for a special reason. I'm thinking love." I said. We both looked down the hill, where we saw a blue-haired figure walk down a path.

"What makes you think that?" he didn't take his eyes off Dawn in the distance.

"For one, you know how the elderly all over the world say romance start with fighting? She was literally trying to kill you at the Oreburgh Gym, remember?" I asked him.

"…Granted, it did happen. But one reason isn't-"

"Then there's all the times she defended me when you insulted me, the little alone-time you had at the Sinnoh League, she was excited when _we_ battled, and I always caught her staring at you." I slightly raised my voice at the end, to reel him in.

"Staring at me?" he asked just what I wanted.

"Of course. You didn't notice? Man, I have to say she was staring at you for at least 5 minutes each time we met. Not to mention after we left Sinnoh, when we talked on videophones every now and then, I would say something like 'it was really a challenge', and she would say 'just like facing Paul in the old days'." I smiled. I noticed his blank stare, then the corner of his lip raised a little.

"…You know, Ash…" he looked back at me. "…why don't you annoy Dawn about this? Since you make it sound so apparent she likes me?" he asked, then walked down the hill. I thought about I for a moment….annoying Dawn about love….maybe it wasn't such a bad idea, considering it came from Paul.

**END**


	7. Chapter 7

**Annoying Dawn**

(May's POV)

"_What did Ash want with Paul?_" I wondered as he dragged him out the door. My thoughts became interrupted as I heard Ash's mother calling me. I stepped into the kitchen.

"Yes, Ms. Ketchum?" I asked.

"Oh, you heard me, May. Would it be a bother if I asked you to keep an eye on Dawn and Max?" she asked.

"Why, is something wrong?" I asked her.

"No, nothing's wrong. I'm just worried about Max's health, with her shopping and all. Could you look for Dawn and entertain her for a while, while your brother gets a rest?" she asked me.

"Of course, Ms. Ketchum. I'll help..." I trailed off as a thought came to me. "...do you know where she is?"

"...Let me think...I don't think she's come back from her shopping spree. But before she left, she said they would be home around four o'clock, so keep an eye open." I noticed her point to the clock which read 3:55. I nodded, then went upstairs. I heard noises from Ash's room, when I felt sorry for him, judging by the kind of noises. I stepped in the guest room and found my parents reading books on the bed.

"Hello, May. What can we do for you?" my dad looked up from his book and smiled.

"Mom, Dad, I'm wondering if Max's PokeNav is on." I asked as I help out my pink PokeNav.

"We're not sure, sweetie. He probably has it on, but why not give a call to check?" my mom said.

"I've only got two bars of battery left." I pointed at the small four bars in the top right corner, but only two were white.

"Make it quick." my father laughed at his own joke, but I didn't find it funny. I sighed as I closed the door, then clicked a few buttons on my PokeNav. Finally, my brother's name came up. There was a small green square besde his picture, he had it on! I pressed his name and the number began dialling.

"Hello?" his voice came over the line.

"Hey, Max. Where are you and Dawn right now?" I asked him as I reached the bottom step of the stairs.

"Well...I'm half-way between Viridian and Pallet, having some battles with a group of trainers. Dawn...I think she went home with her stuff about ten minutes ago..." he sounded still in thought.

"What? How can you not know where she is?" I asked as I opened the front door, looking around ouside.

"I don't know! Don't pressure me! All I know is she left a while ago with her stuff back to Pallet, she should be there by now!" he was really defensive about this.

"All right, all right. Max, I'm going to look-" I stopped when I saw a blue dot coming over a hill. "...Wait, never mind. I see her now. Just hurry back, okay?" I said before ending the call and putting it back in my fanny pack. I went inside and told my parents and Ash's mom about Max, and they understood. I looked outside and saw Dawn coming down the hill, away from Ash and Paul. "Dawn!" I called.

"May?" she asked as she reached the front door.

"Hey!" I smiled to her.

"I was just asking the guys where Max was. I thought Ash would know..." I saw a tinge of pink crawl on her cheeks.

"Max is on Route 1, having some battles." I told her.

"Strange...I thought he was faster than me..." she said to herself.

"So...want to go for a walk?" I asked her.

"Um...sure, why not?" she said happily, then we stepped around the house and took the back road. We walked for a while in silence, admiring the nature as we went. Finally, Dawn spoke. "...It's beautiful, isn't it?" she looked at me.

"...Yeah. Pallet Town is a nice place." I told her. She whispered something I couldn't understand, but I let it go.

"...May...have you ever been loved?" she asked me. I was taken by surprise with this.

"Um...Not that I know of..." I lied. I couldn't let her know about Ash yet.

"...So you've watched love form around you...but not involving you?" she asked.

"...I guess so...what are you getting at, Dawn?" I tilted my head as I looked at her. She looked down at the ground, thne back at me.

"Well...I kind of...like...someone..." her cheeks became pink again.

"Oooh really, who?" I leaned towards her.

"...It's someone we know..." she said slowly.

"Is it...Ash?" I asked, hoping she would say no. Please, say no!

"No! He's just a friend!" she waved her arms in front of her defensively. Thank goodness!

"Well then...Ritchie? Tracey?" I thought out loud.

"No and no." she replied.

"Well...who?" I asked. She didn't reply, she only stared at the ground. I looked at the spot she was looking at, but only saw a rock. We both stared at it for a while. It's funny, if you really look at something...you can sometimes see someone with that personality's face. Like...if you look at the rock, you can kind of see...

I slowly turned to face Dawn. She looked at me, then at the rock. Her eyes widened a bit, then her cheeks went red.

"...Paul?" I stared at her. Her face only went a deeper red. "...I...I...Dawn...?" I was at a loss for words. She liked Paul?

"...May...Paul..." was all Dawn would say.

"Dawn...I understand..." I told her, rubbing her back.

"...Understand how? You like him, too?" Dawn asked as she looked at me.

"No, don't worry about me getting in the way. It's just...I feel your love...but for someone else." I pushed my index fingers together I tell her about Ash now?

"...It's Ash, isn't it?" I looked at her in surprise.

"...How did you...?" I was at a loss of words for my friend.

"I've seen the way you look at him, the way you act near him, I wouldn't be surprised if you two were already a couple." she smiled and giggled happily again. I didn't want to laugh because I knew it was true, but I did to keep her happy.

"Well...I plan to tell Ash soon...I think you should consider the same." I told her.

"...Thanks, May...this helped me calm down about it." she said with a smile. I held out my arms, and she stepped into the hug. When we parted, we smiled at each other.

"Come on, let's go back." I said, she nodded. We walked back to the house and stepped inside. We went in the kitchen and found my parents and Dawn's mother at the table.

"Hello, Dawn, May." Johanna greeted us with a friendly smile.

"Hello." Dawn said as she grabbed a glass of juice.

"Ash's mother went shopping with Ritchie, Misty and Tracey. Max is exploring for trainers, and Paul and Ash are talking on the hill." my dad told us.

"Thanks. I think I'm just going to relax a bit." I said as I stepped out of the room and up the stairs. I opened the door to Ash's room and found Pikachu sleeping on the bed. I smiled as I sat beside him, stroking his soft fur. Suddenly, he stretched his arms and gave a yawn. He rubed his eyes and looked up at me, then smiled. He crawled on my lap and got comfortable while I continued to pet him. I looked up and saw Dawn standing in the doorway.

"Hey, can we talk?" she asked me. I nodded and rubbed the bed beside me. She sat down beside me and sighed. "...I don't know what to do..." she said slowly.

"...Dawn, the harder you wait the harder it is to act normal around them. Trust me, it's been years since I started with Ash." I reassured her.

"May...I don't think I can tell him..." she whispered quietly.

"Dawn..." I stopped to think if I should tell her about Ash and me. "...come here. I want to show you something." I decided it was good for her to know. I stood up and walked to his closet, then opened the door. There were piles of clothes, pokeballs, toys, lots of kids stuff. I tossed the clothes aside and found the box I was looking for. I pulled it out, looking at the top. It was a simple shoebox, but it had the word MAY on the top. I smiled, then opened it. I showed it to Dawn, and she just gasped at the inside.

It had red construction paper on every surface, with small red pink hearts spotting all over. There was a small container of pink pokeblocks in the top corner and a picture of me and Ash hugging at the Wallace Cup in our costumes. The bottom had a small blue gem that glimmered in the light, and a small red bandana made from a small piece of red fabric, with the white pokeball design too. In the middle was his half of our Terricota Ribbon. I picked it up and smiled, then saw the picture of me beneath it. I had my simple red shirt and red bandana on, but I could somehow tell it was when we first met. When he first loved me.

"May...this is amazing!" Dawn whispered as she stared at the box of art.

"I know...Dawn, this is what I wanted to tell you. See how this is so perfectly set-up? So beautifully made? This is..." I paused for a moment, then let it out. "...his way of telling himself he loves me, Dawn." I finished. I admitted it.

"You mean...you know he loves you?" she whispered with her hands over her mouth.

"Not only that..." I paused for a moment. "...he knows I love him. We know we love each other." I told her.

"...Wait...so you _are_ a couple? ...You kept this a secret from everyone?" she gasped. I slowly nodded, then smiled.

"But, Dawn...I don't care. It's nice to know we love each other. We act better around each other, but it's hard to keep this secret." I told her. She smiled, and put her hand on my shoulder.

"Don't worry, I won't tell if you don't want me to. I respect your choice." she said.

"...Thanks." I replied with a smile. We put the box back in the closet and walked downstairs.

I told Dawn about Ash and me being a couple.

Dawn said she loved Paul.

Ash talked with Paul.

Something happened between them.

The rest of this day was going to be interesting.

**END**


	8. Ikarishipping

**The Unlikely Two Come Together**

(Normal POV)

Ash stood on the hill a few moments after Paul left, thinking of his idea. It wasn't half bad. He smiled to himself before putting his hands in his pockets and walking towards his house. When he closed the door behind him, he saw Dawn in the kitchen. When she noticed him, she gave a smile and wave. Ash waved back, then walked up to his room. When he opened the door, he saw May relaxing on the bed with Pikachu on her lap. When she noticed him, she smiled.

"Hi, Ash." she said as he sat beside her.

"Hello. What have you been up to?" he asked as he stroked Pikachu's fur.

"Nothing much. Just spending some time with Dawn." she said calmly.

"What about?" he wrapped his arm around her.

"Just some stuff." she leaned her head against his shoulder as she spoke.

"Uh-huh...she _does_ like Paul, doesn't she?" Ash asked, May was not prepared for that question.

"Wha...How did...?" was all that came out of her mouth. SHe didn't notice Pikachu laughing quietly.

"I can tell, May. Like I said, I'm not stupid." he gently lifted her head and stared into her eyes. "...You also told her about us, didn't you?" Ash caught her by surprise again, but she didn't notice Pikachu holding his hands together pointing at her and Ash.

"Were you spying on us? Do you have a microphone recording?" she began looking around the room for anything used to spy on others. She also didn't realize Pikachu was laughing again.

"No and no. I have my ways, May." he said, then stood up. She stood up with Pikachu in her arms. She huffed and turned her head to the side, then stepped out of the room. Pikachu jumped on Ash's shoulder before she left, giving his trainer a thumbs-up. "Thanks, Pikachu. You're always honest." he siad as he rubbed Pikachu's chin, making him happy. He stepped out of the room and found May with Paul. She had her arms crossed and was tapping her toe, she didn't look happy.

"I don't see you with a girlfriend, Paul. Not man enough?" she asked him. Ash sighed.

"No, I don't want one. They'd only get in my way and annoy me." Paul said as he sat on the couch. May sat across from him on another couch.

"Sure, that's your excuse. But trust me, deep down, you know you want someon special. And you know who it is." she smiled and winked to him, but he remained unfazed. Ash stopped at the last step and smiled.

"You're sounding exactly like your little boyfriend." Paul said, then looked over at Ash. "Your little game of pairing everyone should be done by now. Why are you tormenting me?" he asked innocently.

"Oh, ha ha. Like we don't know the truth." Ash said as he sat beside May.

"What truth? The talk earlier was just to get you thinking; all lies." Paul said plainly as he smirked and closed his eyes, but May knew just the thing.

"Oh well..." she sighed. Ash looked at her, while Paul opened one eye. "...I guess he won't want to know how _Dawn_ feels." May whispered, but both heard.

"What?" they said at the same time.

"Since when did you go talking without telling me?" Ash asked.

"Since you left with him." she looked at Paul. "Oh well, Paul, I'm sure Dawn will be disappointed." May said as she stood up.

"Hold up a second." Paul stopped her as he stood in front of her. "...How do I know this is just a game to make me happy and 'accidentally' say my feelings?" Paul bent his two index fingers in an air-quote as he spoke.

"...Why not ask Dawn?" May smiled as she crossed her arms. Paul smirked.

"Yeah...I'll go talk to her." Paul said, surprising the couple. "...But if you suddenly prank on us when we're talking and whatnot, I'll spill about you two." Paul said as he opened the door and closed it behind him. Ash and May laughed.

"Ah, that was fun." Ash chuckled.

"Yeah, too bad he doesn't know we can prank on them without real consequences for us." May giggled with her hand in front of her mouth. Ash nodded, then opened the door.

"You want to come to the lab? I need to get some things." Ash grinned as he spoke. May smiled and nodded, then they walked down the path to the Oak Laboratory. When they got there, Ash rounded up a few pokemon, then headed down the path again. After a while searching, they finally found Paul and Dawn talking in the small forest. Alone on a fallen tree. Dawn was rubbing her arm nervously while Paul was staring at the sky. "_Good thing there's the river here,"_ Ash thought as he saw the water. He hid in the bush nearby and released two of his pokemon. On the left was a small blue turtle, and the right was a small blue crocodile.

"Squirtle and Totodile?" May whispered in confusion.

"Yes. Now, you two, here's what I want you to do. Squirtle goes down the left side of the river, and totodile goes right. Once you're a good distance away from each other, but not too far from those two..." Ash pointed at the two talking figures on the tree. "...I want you to use a weak water gun combination in the air near them, okay?" the two pokemon nodded to him.

Ash nodded, then the two jumped into the river and swam their ways. After a little swim away, they looked back to their trainer. Ash nodded, and the two shot a weak spout of water into the air. They collided and bounced off, leaving a misty spray on the two and a small rainbow. Dawn looked up and got starry-eyes over the combo, while Paul slowly smiled. Suddenly his eyes widened a little, then he looked at Dawn. Ash and May could tell he knew it was them. Ash smiled as he released a third pokemon.

"Alright, Bulbasaur..." he looked at the smiling green dinosaur. "...When I say, I want you to use a single Leech Seed. Okay?" Bulbasaur nodded. Ash smiled, then nodded to the two water-types. They nodded and fired another weak stream of water, but the water continued to collide in the air. Ash nodded to Bulbasaur, then it fired a single seed at the water. The seed collided at the meeting point of the water, then became a small firework display. Ash smiled as he watched Dawn tug Paul's arm and point at the display, then he released two more pokemon. A small brown bird and a small blue dragon with large teeth. Ash quickly grabbed a stick and held it in front of his head. Sure enough as he thought, the dragon quickly jumped at it and bit on it.

"What do you plan with those two?" May pointed to the two pokemon.

"Well, I plan on using a little draco psychic to my advantage." Ash smiled, then looked at the two they were hiding from. They were both standing and Dawn was pulling Paul's arm while he was looking away. Ash heard Dawn telling Paul to stay in case there were more, but Paul denied. Paul pulled his arm from her grasp and walked away, thanking her for the talk. Dawn smiled and said goodbye, then continued watching the ever-lasting fireworks. Ash sighed as he snuck away, followed by May. When they were out and stood straight, May spoke.

"So...what now? Is that it?" May asked him.

"May, I have a lot more tricks up my sleeve. But we have to wait until they're together again." Ash replied.

"And how do we do that?" May asked. Ash remained silent, then May sighed. She suggested they write some letters to both of them to meet at the same place, Ash nodded. They wrote some letters saying for Dawn/Paul to meet Ash/May at the top of the Northern hill where they sleep. They gave the letters to Ash's mother to give to them, but she didn't know why. Ash said it was for an experiment, and Delia agreed.

May sat on the couch and began reading a comic while Ash ran upstairs to fake a nap, just to make it look like they were off-duty in their game. Sure enough, Paul came in the house. May and Paul ignored each other as he stepped inside the kitchen, grabbed a glass of juice and a surprise note, then hedaed upstairs. He looked in Ash's room to see Ash sleeping on the bed with Pikachu beside him. Paul carefully stared at the sleeping boy, then figured he really was asleep as he closed the door. Ash, however, opened one eye and grinned. May watched Paul step out of the house and Dawn enter a few minutes after.

Dawn received the letter and opened it. She read the letter of Ash wanting to meet her and was confused, but May told her he was asleep. She nodded, then stepped out the front door. May smiled, then heard Ash coming down the stairs. They both smiled, then stepped outside. They saw Dawn waiting on the hill, peacefully looking at the sky. However, they noticed Paul. He was walking down the path to the docks. Away from the hill. He must have figured May was up to something, and decided to ignore it. However, Ash had a back-up plan. He went inside and asked Mimey a favor.

"They think I'm stupid enough to fall for that, but they're wrong." Paul grumbled to himself as he walked down the path. Suddenly, a pink mime-like creature appeared in front of him. It stared at the boy. "What do you want?" Paul demanded. The mime simply held out its arms and grabbed Paul's arms. Suddenly, they flashed blue and Paul found himself on top of the hill. He looked over to see a confused Dawn, but no Mr. Mime.

"Paul?" she asked.

"...Hey..." he replied casually.

"What are you doing here?" she asked with her hands behind her back.

"...May wanted to see me for some reason..." Paul said slowly, unsure if she would catch on the rest of the plan.

"Funny, I'm here waiting for Ash." Dawn giggled.

"Yeah, funny." Paul said sarcastically as he rolled his eyes. He looked around for anything suspicious, but found nothing. He didn't lower his guard, though. Neither Paul nor Dawn noticed a small brown bird fly into the tree, with a blue sharp-toothed creature on its back. After a few more seconds of silence between the two, Ash's plan came in effect.

A small orange sphere shot out of the tree, alarming the two humans. They both looked up to see the sphere stop in the air, and explode into multiple orange rays. The rays were outlined in blue and they started waving through the air, as if someone was guiding them. Then they all came together and formed an orange heart in the sky, glittering with the blue outline. Dawn grabbed on Paul's arm and stared at the magnificent sight, while Paul looked at Dawn. She was really excited about this, and he didn't think she knew she was holding on to him. Then, an azure-blue sphere shot into the sky and stopped in the middle of the heart. A strange pink beam of flowing energy fired towards the sphere, and exploded on impact. The sparkles scattered and covered the heart, leaving it shimmering beautifully. Dawn's eyes turned to stars as she tugged tighter on Paul, but he ignored it. He looked in the tree and saw a small blue and brown figure, knowing they were Ash's pokemon. He sighed and squirmed out of Dawn's grasp, but noticed Dawn's expression to him. Her eyelids were fluttering as she blinked, and her eyes were flashy as a gemstone.

Nearby, two people in a bush didn't like their results. So, just in case, the boy had a back-up plan for this. He put his fingers in the sides of his mouth and blew a loud, sharp whistle. The bird in the tree heard this and looked at Paul and Dawn. Its eys glowed bright blue, and a blue outline appeared around Dawn and Paul. Paul's face suddenly inched closer to Dawn's. Dawn's came closer to Paul's. They both noticed this and knew what was going to happen, and tried to pull away. But the strange power was too strong. Then, their lips pressed together. Dawn blushed a really deep red, while Paul turned a slight lighter red than Dawn. They looked at each other, then noticed something. They weren't pulling away. They weren't squirming or anything. They both felt it...pleasant. Dawn's eyes slowly closed as her arms moved around his neck. Paul continued to look at her as he moved his arms slowly around her waist. Soon, they both had their eyes closed and were enjoying the kiss very much. But due to lack of air, they parted. They panted as they stared into each other's eyes.

"...I...love you...Paul..." Dawn panted without realizing it, then quickly snapped her hands over her mouth. Paul gazed at the blunette who just confessed, then smirked. Dawn became confused at his smile, then thought of something. But it couldn't be true. It couldn't. But then again...just to be sure...

"...Do you feel the same way?" she asked quietly. He looked into her eyes again as his smirk disappeared. She frowned, but then a normal friendly smile appeared on his face.

"...I do. I love you, Dawn."

**END**


	9. Chapter 9

**Epilogue**

(Ash's POV)

Wow, what a turnout! Three days, two couples, but I made it happen! I'm just that awesome. I mean, yeah, I had some help from Totodile, Squirtle, Gible and Noctowl, but hey!

Now here we are, getting ready for the big finale dinner, as my mom calls it. Sure, we had a dinner each night, but they were nothing compared to this! Like every year, we have to take this dinner outside for spacing.

I'm sitting on the end with Pikachu on my lap, May insisted on being close by me. Beside her were Norman and Caroline, then Max. He was sitting beside Ritchie, talking about battling. Then the empty spot for my mom was on the other end of the table, with Misty and Tracey around the other side. Beside them were Paul and Dawn, then Johanna between me and Dawn. Too bad Professor Oak and Gary couldn't make it, though...

"Ash?" I snapped out of thought to look over at May, smiling at me. "Want to make an announcement?" she whispered as she motioned her head towards the others.

"Maybe, let's see how it goes." I whispered back. She nodded, then looked down the table. It was still bare except for the large table cloth covering it and the glasses.

"Does your mother usually stuff you, Ash?" Norman laughed at his fairly-funny joke.

"Yeah," I looked over at Paul, sensing he was about to make a witty remark to the joke. "If she feeds you any more, you'll end up being the turkey." he laughed, joined by everyone else. I looked around to see everyone laughing except Johanna and Caroline, either holding it in or not wanting to insult me. I respect them for that.

"Laugh it up, Paul. You'll be panting tonight, I can tell." I grinned at him, noticing him turn slightly pale. I laughed quietly as I looked over at May, who was laughing with me.

"What was that, Ash?" I looked over at Johanna and saw her looking at me, then glanced at Paul. I couldn't tell her the truth, or my mom would kill me.

"Food's up!" I heard my mother's voice call out.

Remind me to thank my mother and food for my soul.

"Yum! Looks delicious!" Ritchie exclaims as one of the plates were placed on the table. Slowly, more and more plates went down thanks to Mom and Mimie. There was vegetables, salad, turkey, the usual feast.

"Yeah, looks like one of the only competitors for Brock!" Max exclaimed as he looked around.

"That's right." Misty and Tracey answered. I noticed the adults' expressions change a bit, but ignored it. I smiled as my mom sat down and tapped her fork on her glass.

"Excuse me, everyone! Attention, please." everyone looked over at my mom. "I must thank you all for coming out tonight, especially from Hoenn and Sinnoh. I would now like for us all to join hands and say grace." she held out her hands to Ritchie and Misty, which they took.

Everyone held out their hands and joined together, I noticed some smiling as they connected. Paul and Dawn for one, Misty and Tracey, Norman and Caroline, the couples. I only connected hands with Johanna, then held my other towards May. I felt her soft skin rub my hand then her fingers crossed between mine. I glanced at her and saw her glowing smile, I smiled back before I closed my eyes and lowered my head. Everyone else did, too.

"Lord, please let us eat this meal peacefully. We thank you for giving us this opportunity to meet together and become _better friends_," I smiled as I heard her stress the friends part. "We thank you for letting us meet each other and have these friendships, giving us the chance of deepening our relations. Amen." she finished the prayer.

"Amen."

Everyone looked up and broke their hands up. I felt May let go of my hand and saw hers move below the table. I lowered mine under the table, knowing what she was thinking. Sure enough, I felt her fingers entwine mine again. We smiled at each other, then reached for the food with our free hand.

"Wait!" everyone looked up at my mom. "I'm sorry for the delaying, truly, but I forgot something." Norman said it was fine, and she smiled. "Okay, I'll go quickly. I noticed some of the kids got closer over these past few days..." she glanced at the certain couples. "...And I just wanted to give a toast to them." she raised her glass of juice. Wait, why didn't I get the first drink?

"...I agree." Johanna said, raising her glass.

"Young love is the spice of life." Norman raised his glass, followed by Caroline. Soon, everyone's glass was up.

"To love." my mom announced.

"Love to cure life's misery." I said as I thought of it, not realizing it until Norman looked over and smiled at me.

"To love!" everyone else said, then tapped their glasses al around and drank. Suddenly, I noticed Paul smirking. I must be a mind reader, because I was right again.

"I have another toast." he said as he stood up, turning slightly towards me. "...To Ash and May." his smirk was replaced with a friendly smile. Tracey and Misty immediately raised their glasses, followed by Dawn. The reason was simple. "Ash and May...I'm thinking on behalf of the newly couples here..." he looked at the smiling and nodding couples beside him. "...We dedicate this toast to you two, for the happy years to come. To Ash and May!" his voice really sounded happy.

"To Ash and May!" Tracey, Misty and Dawn recited the phrase with friendly smiles. The parents looked at each other, then raised their glasses. Everyone clinked, then lowered their glasses. I felt a pain in my chest, not knowing what it was. Was it lying to my friends?

"Now that that's cleared up, are there any other announcements?" my mom asked. Everyone looked around the table, looking for signs of announcements. May and I looked at each other, wondering if we should tell. I moved my glance to Norman and Caroline, who were giving those 'well?' faces. I looked at my mom and saw her smiling, nodding. I unwillingly, but finally, looked at Paul smiling at me. He gave a single nod, then winked. I rolled my eyes, I felt my head beating from my mental fighting with myself. Finally, it stopped. I decided. It was as good a time as any...

"Actually...there is something." I said as I stood, getting everyone to look over. "...Well...it's not a toast...but an announcement. I just wanted to get this off my chest...and someone else's before it slipped..." I saw May smile in the corner of my eye. "...It's been for a while...and we thought of keeping it secret...but it was getting annoying. So...what I'm trying to say is..." I stopped when I noticed everyone's eyes move. I turned to see May standing beside me, smiling. She moved her hand on mine and gave that reassuring look. I smiled back, then turned back to the group. "...May and I are a couple." it was out. Finally, done. Simple enough, right?

"What!" Max suddenly exclaimed, getting everyone's attention.

"I figured it was only a matter of time." Tracey said.

"I knew it would happen soon." Misty said. The parents said nothing, but only smiled at each other. Johanna still had a surprised expression, but decided not to speak for some reason. I laughed quietly as I noticed Ritchie looking more confused than ever before.

I sat down and let Pikachu settle on my lap again. Finally, everyone was ready to eat. I grabbed a small piece of watermelon and handed it to Pikachu. Pikachu looked at me and lowered his ears, giving me the look. I rolled my eyes and called the special condiment down the table. Once it reached me, I put the ketchup on the edge of the table for him to reach easily. He smiled and began eating the watermelon.

I smiled as I put some turkey on my plate, then felt something on my hand. I looked over to see a smaller feminine hand on mine. I looked up to see May smiling. I looked around and saw the three other couples holding hands as they ate. I smiled, and rubbed my thumb over May's skin.

All the couples here were happy together. Norman and Caroline were happily united long ago, but some were caused yesterday. Tracey and Mist' are going to go a long ways of happiness, I can tell. Dawn and Paul were happy back in Sinnoh, not showing it but feeling it, and they knew. Now, they're together and can show their love easily. I'm still gonna poke at Paul as revenge every now and then, though. I thought about some other people I could pair up, then something came to me. It was on my mind the past few days, but I forgot about it for a while. When I read it in my mind, I accidentally laughed out loud. Everyone looked at me strangely. If I wasn't me, I would have too.

"_Too bad Brock isn't here, or he'd flip. I guess I have some spare time for giving lessons."_

**END**


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